Snowed-in Circle
by Thisisentertaining
Summary: Kaitou Kid looked around as the snow covered Akako's circle and spoiled her plans, citing the magic of "mother nature", but what if there really was a different sort of magic working that night? After all, Those heists seemed like so much fun, and we all know what comes from snow and fun. Two-shot.
1. Chapter 1

This is a little different for me as far as writing goes, but honestly I'm surprised that no one else thought of this first. It just fits in too well! This'll probably be a two shot, simply because the idea of Kid and Jack working together on a heist is too good to pass up.

I own nothing.

* * *

285 years is a long time to be alone, Jack Frost knew that better than anybody. It hurt, the loneliness, and often times he was yelling at the moon with a heart as bitter as his winter winds. But letting bitterness control your life is boring and just makes you more upset and unlikable, so he tried to make the best of things. He played with kids, he had _fun, _wandering the streets of the world and spreading his amazing frost and snow. He did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted and had a life pretty much devoted to enjoying himself and having the most fun he could have. It would have been perfect if it wasn't so crippling lonely.

However, when those kinds of thoughts arose he tried to push them to the back of his mind and have fun. Sometimes he was more successful than others. Nigt was the worst though. At night there were no snowball fight to distract him, he couldn't make a kid's sled go flying 120 miles an hour. He was more alone then than he ever was during the day, alone with the moon who hadn't spoken with him since the day he was created, no matter how much he yelled and pleaded. What's worse there was nothing fun to do once Sandy's sand had faded into the dreams of children. He didn't have to sleep too much, so he was always looking in vain for something to do once the golden sand faded away.

Which was why that commotion in Japan caught his interest so much. At first he wasn't sure what was going on. There were lights and yelling and strange puffs of smoke. When he got closer, he still had no clue what was going on, except it seemed the police were trying to catch a man in a pure white suit. Jack paused, floating on the wind with his staff laying across his shoulders, watching the strange scene with interest. The policemen didn't have a chance. Every time they got close there would be another puff of smoke and the guy would disappear, only to reveal himself on the other side of the room.

It was almost like the police were serious and wanted to catch the guy while all he was interested in was a game of tag, not really concerned with escaping. It made the cop's frantic and frenzied attempts even funnier. It reminded Jack of when the Easter Bunny chased him around for some spring snowfall. The kangaroo was pretty much trying to kill him, but to Jack it was just a game.

With a grin the winter spirit relaxed to watch the chase, it looked like fun. After a while the man in white either got tired of the game or succeeded with what he was trying to do, for he stood upon a banister high in the air, (now how had he gotten there) and held up a large jewel. "Thank you my dear officers for the fun, but I must be going." And with a flash of light he disappeared. Jack jumped back as the window blew open, getting out of the way just in time to avoid being walked through. Er, make that _flown_ through.

The man in white burst through the open window, his flowing cape became a glider as he floated upon the wind, laughing joyously as he flew. Jack watched, shocked for a moment before joining in and flying beside the caped thief. The man was middle aged though spry and energetic. With his hang glider he flew through the air nearly as effortlessly as Jack, ad the winter spirit floated behind him, raving about how cool that had been. It didn't really matter that the man couldn't hear, not really. Jack stayed with the man until he landed, flying off into the night and promising that next time he would get there at the beginning and see everything through.

By sticking around the town the next morning he heard that the man was a famous thief called Kaitou Kid, famous for his grandiose heists, informing the police when he planned to steal, a spotless track record, and returning the gems the next day. No one knew who he was or why he stole. He was a thief in the night and in the morning he was gone.

It perked Jack's interest and he made sure to spend some time in that town every winter, watching the heists that he could and always cheering for Kid, for the "bad guy" who really just looked like someone who wanted to have fun. Every time he went he was tempted to join in the fun, just a little. On Kid's side of course.

It would be so much fun! A piece of ice under the inspectors feet here, frost keeping them from watching out the windows, a slight gust of wind to speed the thief along in his glider. However he never pulled through, always hesitating at the last minute. So when the winter came that he had finally, _finally,_ convinced himself to join in no matter what, he was ecstatic. There was only one problem: He didn't pull a heist that year.

Jack waited, riding the wind to Japan nearly every night for the whole season and the next. It wasn't until the third that he decided to start hanging around the police station and he finally heard the news: Kid was gone. Dead or retired, no one knew, but he wasn't coming back. Jack had crumbled then, simply falling to the ground with his head leaned against the wall. Even if the man couldn't see him, Kid was the closest thing Jack had had for a friend. But, after creating a fairly large blizzard, the boy left and moved on. Human died, he'd almost forgotten that because he knew he never would. He didn't want to dwell on it though, he wanted to have some fun.

* * *

297 years is a long time to be alone. Jack Frost knew that better than anybody. He was in Japan again, reminiscing. It had been 12 years since he first saw Kaitou Kid that winters night, and 8 since the man had disappeared. Jack had given up hope of ever seeing him again. So when he heard a fairly familiar commotion he froze in his tracks for a moment, shocked, before pelting towards the noise full force.

He came upon a scene much like the one he had seen 12 years prior, police running around like chickens while chasing a figure in white. Jack laughed joyously as he watched the scene, though it was also tinged with regret. This wasn't his Kid. It wasn't the one from years ago, and if the original had passed down the mantle at the top of his game, it could only mean that he was no longer on the pane of the living.

His successor was just as good as the original, almost exactly the same, but his methods were different. If anything, this new guy was even more fun! Throwing confetti when the other one would have just used smoke, spontaneously dying the hair of his pursuers or changing their clothes. When it was finally time for this new Kid to leave, flying out on the wind just as his mentor had done, Jack wasted no time in urging the wind to help the boy, no older than Jack's physical age, to escape. After all, just as the original Kid had taught him, humans died, Jack had to have fun with them while he could.

Jack played with Kid whenever he could, both in uniform and without. He tripped officers and froze their equipment during heists, he and the wind flew with the boy, laughing together though Kaito thought he was laughing alone. Frost laughed as the boy flailed his arms and legs attempting to skate, sliding barefooted across the ice around him. He cheered as the boy skied, tumbling through the snow beside him and his friends, attempting to help the less-skilled girl any way he could. He laughed outright at Kaito's daring as he dressed in a Kid outfit to ski with Aoko in the small competition.

He made sure that the boy and his friends had fun in the snow. He even tried to hit that stick-in-the-mud Hakuba with some of his special snow, but it backfired. Turns out the teen genuinely found attempting to catch Kid fun and the snow gave him even more gusto.

Midwinter, 300 years after his birth as Jack Frost, the boy was once again flying through the land of the Rising Sun. Jack let out a loud whoop when he saw a familiar white figure streaking towards a museum. He flew up to ride the wind beside the boy, animatedly raving about how excited he was about the heist, not caring that the Japanese boy was deaf to his words. True to tradition, kid said nothing in reply to the winter spirit, gliding silently through the night to the museum.

As soon as the snow spirit saw the familiar building he frowned, the expression mirrored by Kid. The place was completely empty, its halls and columns hidden in shadow and not a hint of light shown from its depths. In short it looked exactly as a museum should in the middle of the night; which was exactly why the scene was so wrong.

Where were the floodlights? The cop cars? The screaming inspectors, paranoid officers, and cursing detectives? This wasn't what a Kid heist was supposed to look like. Jack began to wonder if Kid had decided to switch to more a more traditional method of thieving, but that suspicion crumbled when he saw that the boy was just as confused as he was. Still, Kid said nothing as he made his way into the museum, saying nothing of his misgivings until he was close enough to the gem to touch it and had yet to meet any resistance.

Jack watched the scene from on of the room's windows, gazing curiously. Because of his position he was able to see things that Kid could not, including the officers crouched hiding behind the displays, each one adorned with a gas mask. Jack cried out a warning, but of course Kid didn't hear it and only walked forward until his fingers were inches from the glass. His gaze encompassed the room.

"Huh? This is so weird…" He mumbled to himself. "I know I tipped them off about today." With a shrug he lifted the glass lid surrounding his prize, only to fall back and grunt in shock as gas squirted into his face. Suddenly the hidden cops jumped up from their hiding places, Nakamori laughing as he jumped up.

"Ha! You fell for such an obvious trick."

Kid coughed, but with a poof of smoke disappeared. Jack cast his eyes around the room, starting in panic when he saw the boy hanging on the ceiling. He didn't look good. True to Jack's fears Kid fell with a yawn, collapsing to the ground with a yawn as he began to succumb to the sleeping gas. The inspector whirled on the thief, laughing. "Fool! Did you think you could get away?"

"Come on Kid! Get up! Get up!" Jack yelled, and wind battered at the windows, but Kid was exhausted, he didn't move. Couldn't move. Suddenly the boy's eyes widened. His back arched as though pained and Jack could see a small dribble of blood dripping through his lips. "KID!" Jack yelled, and the wind battered even more fiercely again the window as Jack pounded on it with his bare fists.

The police didn't seem to notice, didn't cease their attack. Within seconds the officers were upon him, holding his down while the inspector crowned in his victory. Then Kid screamed. Jack's heart turned to ice and fell like lead in his chest as he heard the closest thing he had to a friend cry out. The scream was that of tortures soul in pain and kid curled upon himself, pulling his hat down over his eyes. The officers pulled back at the scream, startled, and let out yells of their own when Kid put down his hands and revealed the blood now cascading down his forehead.

With a flick of the hand and a poof of smoke Kid disappeared, leaving behind nothing but concerned and confused officers and a slight trail of blood.

Jack followed Kid as the Japanese boy made a trek through the forest, worried for his sort-of-friend though he could do nothing to help him. Kid strode through the woods like a man with a purpose, as though he knew where he was going and what he was supposed to do. It freaked Jack out. He knew magic- true magic, not Kid's tricks- when he saw it, he just didn't know whose magic it was. So he hung back slightly as Kid made his way through the forest, more wary and watchful than the Asian boy.

Finally Kid stopped, standing at the edge of the forest where the trees met with a large and ornate manor, and in front of it sat a large thrown with a beautiful teenage girl seated upon it. "Oh ho ho!" She laughed pompously. "I've been waiting for you, you arrogant thief! Tonight, it's your turn to have something stolen. I will be the one to steal your heart!"

Kid simply stared. "You'll catch a cold in that outfit, your highness." He finally said, and Jack, still hidden in the trees and gaping, nodded silently and emphatically. The girl was dressed like an Egyptian princess, a golden cobra adorning her head and numerous necklaces cascaded down her neck. Her torso was cloaked in what was little more than a bra. An expanse of skin separated the scant top from her skirt, draped around her bottom like a piece of simple cloth, under it was a pair of midnight-black , who brought the cold wherever he went, had never seen a woman dressed as her, and he could only gape, shocked at the display.

The girl however, laughed uproariously at Kid's words. "So now you're trying to play the gentleman?" She asked with a cackle. "I already know your true identity!"

"You shouldn't tease your elders," Kid replied, confusing Jack. Elder? They were almost the same exact age. Unless he was claiming to be the first Kid, who Jack flew with so many years ago. Even so, if this girl was a spirit then she would be much older than either Kid. Though Jack considered that doubtful. He watched as Kid stepped closer, claiming to want the voodoo doll in the girl's grip. Jack thought it was more likely that the girl was a which, a mortal and human who borrowed the magic of a spirit. The suspicion was confirmed when Kid suddenly paused, frozen in a magic circle. That solves it, a true spirit had no such need for magic circles.

"You body is now mine! You are now my slave!" The witch yelled triumphantly.

Kid remained calm and cool, as he always did with an audience. "My my, what a spoiled princess."

The girl snarled at his response, and Jack began to move to help his friend. "I'll show you whose in charge." She hissed, and a bolt of power hissed through the air, making the magic cirle erupt in flames. Jack dived back into the forest of trees before he could be noticed. Okay, so the direct approach wouldn't work. Winter sprite and fire, especially magic fire, weren't a good mix.

Kid made a move as though crying out in pain, sweat pouring down his faze as the heat surrounded him. The witch approached him, holding up a piece of chocolate to his pain-filled face. "Do you want to escape the pain? If so then eat this chocolate and I promise to spare you. But in exchange your heart will be mine forever!"

Jack took a deep breath at the witch's words, floating up into the sky to begin his magic and thick flakes of snow began to slowly fall. This was just a witch after all, a mortal using debts and borrowed magic. Even the most powerful witch couldn't stand up to a spirit, and certainly not an elemental such as Jack.

Kid reached for the chocolate as the first few flakes hit the ground, The girl began to laugh in victory as the snow kicked up in power. Suddenly, to Jack's relief and the witch's horror, Kid paused, stopped eating.

"What's wrong Kid?" The girl screamed. "Hurry up and eat it! KID?!"

"Sorry princess," The thief in white said softly. "Your magic no longer works." And he crushed the chocolate in his hand. Jack did a silent fist pump of victory, still unseen by the pair below.

The witch whirled, looking at the cystalized water in shock and horror. "Snow? She screeched. "Snow covered my magic circle!"

Jack grinned at the girl's outrage, casting the girl a smile and a cheeky wave. However the witch's eyes were trained on the fluffy white that covered the ground and had yet to notice the magical being.

With a flourish gained from years of showmanship Kid cast his cape into a billowing circle as he stood. "It's the magic of mother nature."

Jack didn't bother to hide his grimace at the words. It was no less than he had been expecting after all. It wasn't like Kid was going to say 'the magic of Jack Frost' after all. The thief didn't know that the sprite existed. In fact, Jack though to himself in attempt to dull the lonely ach in his heart, the Japanese teen had probably barely heard of the legend of Jack Frost, if at all.

Here the snow spirits were the Yokai. They were possessive jerks too, they hated when he came to their territory. Luckily the Japanese winter sprites could do little to the full blown Spirit of Winter and they preferred the mountain woods to Kid's sprawling cities so Jack didn't bump into them the boy that

No, Jack had known when he had first started laying the snow that Kid would never see him, never recognize the spirit as his savior. It still hurt. The boy shook himself lightly, paying attention just as the girl began screaming.

"Your magic is a lie!" She yelled at the Kaitou and Jack wondered what he had missed. "You're just fooling people! My magic is real! Real magic can do the same things!"

"That's right." Kid said, shocking the witch. "I couldn't agree more." And with a loud bang and a flash of light, Kid disappeared.

"Ah! Trying to run?" She yelled to the empty space only for the thief's voice to sound from a hat behind her.

"While it may be that my magic deceives people those who watch it-"

"SILENCE!" The girl yelled, yanking the hat off the ground only to fall back with a scream as she was bombarded with lights and smoke, confetti and doves.

"-enjoy being deceived."

"Woah," breathed Jack as he floated a little lower in order to see the birds, seeing Kid's "magic" up close for the first time. Knowing that it was all fake somehow made it more impressive.

Unfortunately the noise caught the witch's attention, the magic in her blood allowing her to see and hear the winter spirit. She whirled to the noise, immediate deaf to what Kid was saying behind her. "YOU!" She seethed, making Kid stop with a pout.

He had prepared the speech earlier when Akako started acting freaky. It was going to be amazing moving and amazing! He turned to the girl to see why she interrupted him, only to pause in confusion to see that she was snarling at seemingly empty air.

Jack gulped. Oops, that probably wasn't such a good idea. The girl stalked towards him, and though the boy knew he had far more power than her, he floated a few wary feet back. The girl growled at him.

"This wasn't nature's magic at all! It was all you! I should have known, the pesky winter spirit that I hear manages to mess everything up."

"That's me! Who have you been talking too, the kangaroo?"

"What are you doing here? Spirits don't meddle in the lives of mortals."

Jack scoffed, liking the girl less and less. "That's not a rule. Most spirits just honestly don't care what you guys are up to. I'd like you to corner North next Christmas and try and tell him he isn't supposed to "meddle" in the lives of children."

The girl was practically boiling with anger, but before she could reply a polite and concerned voice interrupted her. "Uh.. princess? Who are you talking to?"

The girl turned to Kid in shock for a moment before turning back to Jack, a gleeful and spiteful smile adorning her face. "Ho ho ho! He can't even _see _you can he? Why waste your time helping someone who doesn't even _believe _in you."

Jack flinched back at the words, the wind picking up for a moment and becoming bitter and harsh, the ice stinging like pellets. Then it slowed again as Jack put up a smirk to hide the hurt. The boy shrugged, vainly trying to pretend that the girl's words hadn't struck a blow. "Well, if I only spent my time helping those who _could_ see me, I'd have a lot of free time. Even more than I already have. Besides," He grinned mischievously. "I'd always be willing to help a guy escape from girl so crazy this is the only way she could get a date."

"How dare you!" Akako screeched, paying no mind to the utterly befuddled Kid. "I have dozens of boys on their knees begging me just to look at them!"

"Uh huh, suuure." Jack replied, unconvinced. He shot a small bolt of frost at the girl's bare midriff and she shivered as ice met skin. Immediately her eyes seemed to blaze, and she began to start an incantation, only for Frost to rudely interrupt her.

"Oh come on, think this through, witch. Do you really want to find a spirit in it's own domain?" The wind picked up again, causing flurries of snow to rise up in the air and the girl screeched in anger. "I think you're done here."

With one last angry scowl the girl began to make her way to the mansion past the woods, casting a glance at Kid as she left. "Looks like you have interesting friends, my little thief, weather you know it or not."

Kid was completely dumbfounded by the events, but his poker face- always the poker face- showed nothing but a calm exterior as the magician bowed slightly to the witch. "It's always good to know that you have friends in high places, especially for a thief such as I. However, princess, being a thief I wish to warn you not to make light of me. For in that frozen heart of yours I can see that hidden deep inside, there's a beautiful jewel waiting to be found." Well, he got to use the end of the speech, so what if it hadn't been as in-context as he would have liked. It seemed to do the effect anyways as the girl looked back to him with large, shocked eyes and breathed out a whisper of his name.

"Wow! This guy sure knows how to sweet talk a girl. Think he'd give me lessons?"

Akako snapped out of her thoughts long enough to send Jack a glare before she made her way back to her home, collapsing once she reached the steps and fingering a rose Kid had given her during his tricks. She felt water begin to pool in her eyes. A jewell, in her heart? Her grotesque servant slowly tottered up to her. "Master?" He (it) asked worriedly.

"I know," The sorceress replied as she staunched the water threatening her eyes. She held the flower out in front of her. "If a witch cries, she'll lose her magic." And with a burst of power the rose was no more.

* * *

Kid watched as Akako glared at empty space once more before the girl walked away. He however, remained where he stood, looking into the empty space as though he could see the same figure as the witch had. Unfortunately the illusion was ruined by the fact that Jack was no longer there but standing next to Kid, only a foot or so away. The thief took off his hat and bowed deeply to the empty air, his hand going through Jack as he flourished.

"I don't know who you are or how you seemingly created the snow but you have my gratitude." A cool wind blew his cape, as though winter itself was saying 'you're welcome' and Kid grinned, no longer looking to the empty spot but to the night sky. "And I promise I will find out who you are so that I can thank you properly next time you come to visit."

Jack froze, wondering at the promise before kicking up the snow playfully as if to say, you're on. He couldn't believe it. So Kid didn't know who he was, so Jack still didn't technically have a believer. For the first time he could remember, someone wanted to see him, wanted to believe. And that was good enough.

As Kid made his way home Jack left Japan and strangely enough he didn't visit it for the rest of that winter. He was scared. Afraid that Kaito was making an empty promise to an empty sky, terrified that he would return to find that the thief not only couldn't see him, but no longer cared to, petrified that the teen had given up. So he left Japan that night riding on his ever faithful mount.

"So wind, whattaya say we go around spreading winter 'round the globe one more time an' stop in Burgess just in time for Easter?"

* * *

As I'm sure many of you know, that Easter proved to be an extremely exciting one for Jack and the next year when he was completing his rounds he flew over Japan as a full-fledge guardian with eight, count 'em eight, believers and Jaimie was working on convincing more kids that he was real.

So, in all of the hustle and bustle and getting used to being a Guardian, the winter spirit had completely forgotten about the promise of a certain Kaitou. In fact, it wasn't until he saw a flash of white below – white that shouldn't be there because he hadn't started the snow yet- that he remembered the thief at all. When he did he grinned, landing on a building roof behind Kid as the thief perched on the edge. He had the wind buffer the teen slightly, in a friendly way as his first flakes began to fall.

Kid's eyes widened as he felt the wind move as though a living creature, gasping completely as snow began to fall. "Jack Frost!" He yelled as though calling out for a friend. Behind him Jack caught his breath, hardly daring to believe, to remember the promise of a year ago.

"Y-you said my name." And Kid turned at the voice. "You can hear me." The Kaitou looked just as utterly shocked as Jack felt and the ice boy flew closer until he nearly touched the thief, making him stumble back. "You can see me!"

300 years was a long time to be alone, Jack Frost knew that better than anybody. However, now he has nine, count 'em nine, believers and thirteen friends. Yes, 300 years is a long time to be alone, but as Jack flies beside Kid, the two talking animatedly as they flew to the heist, each riding the wind in their own way, he knows that he isn't alone anymore. Sometimes, he almost wants to thank Pitch, thank the witch, because without them he would be discovering how long a time it would be to spend 301 years alone.


	2. Chapter 2

Okay guys, as promised here is finally the second part of the story! Sorry it took so long to do, I write this at work usually and lately they have been a lot bussier because it is prime camping season. (and I work at a campground).

I am actually thinking of doing one more, maybe, where Kid meets more of the Guardians but I don't know when I could type it. Anybody want to see more?

Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed and followed and favorited. I never expected this to get so much attention!

* * *

"Okay, but you have to be the one to actually grab the jewel. I finally got on North's good side."

"North?"

"Santa."

"Ah, so he's real too. Aoko will be happy. No problem, I'm gonna be on the naughty list for a while anyways."

Jack shrugged, slouching into an even more relaxed position laying across the backseat of the car in the center of the Kid cave. "Don't worry, I was the record holder as of last year. It's amazing how far saving the dreams and innocence of children can go towards switching lists."

Kaito grinned at his white-haired friend, pushing aside his plans for a moment. If Jack agreed to help this would be the _best_ heist _ever!_ "You were the record holder, eh? Well, as Kaitou Kid I'm giving you a formal notice that I plan to steal your crown."

"Yeah right! I've had 300 years to get to where I am, you don't stand a chance!"

"Really? As I see it you're at a standstill, have to work on staying on the nice list now that you're all buddy-buddy with Santa, whereas I have my whole life to be as naughty as I want."

Jack scoffed. "You're only on the list if you're a kid. You're getting kicked off when you reach 18… or whatever is considered adulthood in Japan."

"Well then I better get to work." Kid laughed, and with a poof of smoke Jack's pure white hair was bright pink.

"Hey!" He squawked, reaching up for a handful of the garish colored hair. Kid just laughed and shook his head, the color making his friend look even stranger than normal. Which reminded him, he was curious about the strange boy, had a couple of questions for him.

"So where are you "from" technically?" He asked, leaning forward in anticipation as though expecting the wintry boy to say he hailed from some far off planet or mysterious dimension.

"Pennsylvania. Burgess Pennsylvania to be precise."

Kid almost fell over in shock. Of all he things he had been expecting his mysterious, powerful, magic wielding friend to say, that wasn't it. "You mean like the state?"

"Uh huh. Grew up in one of the colonies in the 1700s."

"B-but then, how did you- how are you-"

"Magic!" Jack supplied, waving his fingers mysteriously and Kid rolled his eyes. "Seriously, magic from the Man in the Moon. I was dying and then poof! I was Jack Frost." Of course it was much more complex and strange then that, but he'd only been talking to the kid for a week. He wasn't about to spill his every secret.

"So, if you're from America how do you know Japanese so well?"

"Magic." The snow-teen said again, making Kid sigh in fake exasperation.

"You can't claim magic as the answer for everything you don't know."

"Why not? It's the only thing that makes sense. How did I rise from the dead: the Moon's magic. How did I get ice powers: the Moon's magic. How do I understand all of these languages? The Moons's magic seems like as good an answer as any. Face it, I got magic running out my ears."

Kid started laughing diabolically. "Oh man, this is gonna be _great!_ You're gonna drive those detective's crazy! They would never- ever in a million years- even consider that the secret to one of my tricks is actual magic. We're going to drive them out of their minds! Hakuba's going to be glaring at me for months, trying to figure it out! We have to send him a special invitation." Once again Kid was rummaging through his plans, taking notes on a small notepad. "While we're at it why not invite Tantei-kun too! Though that might not be a good idea if… Oy! Can little kids see you?"

"Only if they believe, and so far my grand total of believers is nine, including you, so I don't think it'll be a problem. Why?"

"Just making sure. Now let's get to work. Have any ideas?"

"Just one." Jack said, his smile becoming more and more devilish. "What would you say if I told you I could get the wind to carry that hang glider without you?"

"Depends, would it be able to do that _and_ carry the two of us?"

"I'm sure it could manage."

"Then I'd say I like it a lot."

* * *

When the date of the heist came about, weeks later, the officers quickly set their best men on deciphering it. Within the next day they had quickly deduced where the heist would take place, when it would be, and what the target was. The only thing they hadn't understood was the smaller note scrawled as though in afterthought at the bottom of the page.

_P.S. I'm bringing my friend Jack Frost to the show._

No one had any clue what that meant, and no amount of research on the legendary figure helped, especially because much of the first page of results was swamped with blog entries about some group of kids in America insisting they had seen him. Some thought that the message was referring to the freak blizzard that had rolled in the night before, causing the schools to call in an impromptu snow day. The fact that Kid was somehow able to predict a storm that even the best meteorologists didn't see coming seemed to just add to his mystery. Yet Conan, Hakuba, and even Nakamouri knew that it would be something more than that.

The inspector was yelling to his men that Kid would somehow use the snow to get away, that it was to slow them down and distract them. Despite the weather the streets around the hotel were completely packed with people, all searching the skies and museum for a hint of the thief.

Finally that hint came, swooping in with the form of Kid's glider. The crowed cheered, but the cheers turned to shocked but excited screams as they realized that the glider slid emptily through the air. Kid snickered from his spot floating in Jack's arm. The wintry boy cast him a grin but other than that gave no reply, intent on whispering instructions to an eager wind. Finally Katio caught sight of his detectives and a wild laugh left him. Conan and Hakuba stood together, their eyes wide and but determined as their logical minds attempted to understand the phenomenon.

Jack followed Kid's eyes, laughing as well when he saw the stunned faces, though he did not know that the two shocked boys were the detectives that Kid talked about so often. The glider dropped slightly as his attention wavered. As the glider flew up correctly again, Jack and Kid shared a look, it was time. With the press of a button a spotlight Kid had tampered with earlier blinked to life, casting light on the forms of Kid and Jack, though only one of the two was visible to the waiting crowd.

A collective shout rose, each of the officers and detectives crying out for Kid while the crowd cheered. "Ladies and Gentlemen!" Kid called, his voice echoing throughout the snowy air as he gestured wildly, the glider matching his movements. "Welcome to the show! I would like to present to you tonight's lovely assistant: Jack Frost!"

At Kid's call Jack sent the glider away, landing it on a nearby building while the two dropped to the roof of the museum. Of course no one could see the winter spirit, few of them had ever heard the name before and even those that did simply assumed it was a code name or one of Kid's riddles. Nakamouri sent officers into each building, half charging after the glider while the rest went after Kid. The phantom thief towed his friend through the museum, picking locks and leading down corridors with ease the white-haired eternal teen had never seen. Once as they heard the sounds of officers running their way Kid slipped into the shadows, hiding behind a tarp the exact shade of the wall behind him.

Jack froze, his mind going blank as he realized that he didn't have a hiding place. It wasn't until the officers ran straight through him, leaving his gasping in shocked pain, that he remembered he was invisible to them. Kid rose when the officers were out of sight, wincing apologetically at the winter spirit. "Sorry, I didn't think about-"

But Jack just shook his head, refusing to let the disbelief- of adults of all people- get in his way. "No no no, we can use this. Wait here for a second, I'm gonna scout ahead." Before Kid could reply Jack was shooting through the museum, smiling when he came to the main exhibition hall. The police were swarming the place, all centered around Kid's false lead. He rushed back to the teenage thief, grinning broadly.

"They fell for it. The police are all guarding that old relic, there aren't any left to be watching the jewel." Kid had left a riddle with a double meaning. One, the more obvious answer, led to an ancient vase well advertised for being on display for only a single day before leaving Japan forever, the other being a large but not particularly famous sapphire that had sat in the building for years. As predicted, the officers had jumped the instant they had an answer, never even realizing the other possibility of a different target.

Kid frowned, but then his grin grew. "What about the detectives? Did you see them?"

Jack just shrugged. "I dunno. I've never seem them before, but I don't think so."

The thief cackled happily. "Trust me, if they were there you'd notice. Oh boy, come on, let's go. Eventually even Nakamouri-san notices when he's following a false lead."

Silent as a shadow the two made their way into the room that housed their true target, barely taking a step within its threshold before the dark space lit with the shine of four small flashlights. Kid blinked as the light shone in his eyes, though a large smile played at his lips, and Jack jumped in surprise as the brightness filled his vision. The spirit blinked in confusion as a barrage of excited voices joined the bobbing lights. They were… children's voices, Jack realized with ever growing confusion.

With a final blink the pair's blurry vision cleared, and to Kid's joy and Jack's bewilderment the duo found themselves surrounded by four young children yielding watch flashlights. One of the little girls, the one with darker hair and a pretty bow, had a bright smile on her face and was crowing in victory, attempting to share her excitement with a lighter haired girl who simply looked bored. One of the boys, the smaller one with freckles ironically enough, was shouting threats at Kid, claiming that the thief would never escape their grasp while the larger boy backed him up.

With a final, bewildered stare Jack began laughing, shooting up in the air to leap over the children with ease, his light weight allowing him to leap to near-fling heights even lacking the wind. Jack grinned at Kid, still standing out in the ring of bright lights, and the surrounding children.

"Well Kid, you didn't tell me your greatest foes are a couple of kids," He laughed quickly, eyes lighting up with joy. "This is going to be so much fun!"

The white-clothed thief grinned at the sprit for a second before hiding the expression as he moved one hand up to lower the brim of his hat. "Surprise."

The children shared a grin, assuming that Kid was talking about how they had surprised him. Only the light haired girl refrained from sharing their triumph. She continued to eye Kid suspiciously, eyes darting around as though expecting to catch sight of the "accomplice" mentioned in his note. Jack laughed again, recognizing the children. If only they knew that they had been throwing snowballs with Kid's accomplice only hours before. Each of them, even the light haired girl and the boy with glasses, both of whom felt so much like adults. He had the feeling he had his Fun Flakes to thank for their part in the games. Speaking of which, where was the kid was glasses?

"Conan-kun!" The dark haired girl cried, turning the group's attention to the doorway where the missing child stood beside a blond teen, both of the detectives sporting matching smirks. Conan lifted his arm, seeming to point a watch at Kid while Hakuba pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

"Don't move Kid." The young boy called as a soccer ball fell from his belt. The thief opened his mouth to provide a smooth retort but the instant he began to speak the children surprised him. Their small bodies leaped, clinging to the phantom thief and effectively stopping him from just disappearing on the spot. The dark haired girl and taller boy clung to one leg while the larger boy had a death grip on the other, the calm girl had her hand's twisted in Kid's cape. In milliseconds Hakuba had strode over, locking the gentleman thief's hands behind his back.

The Phantom thief was silent for a moment, surprised by the turn of events, before he laughed brightly, making the children cling even tighter in attempt to prevent his escape. "Well done Tantei-kun, Tantei-san, you managed to surprise me. However, you haven't caught me yet. Or did you forget, I came with a friend tonight?"

Taking it as his cue Jack spun, allowing the temperature to drop, calling for the wind to burst the windows open, and coating the walls in thick frost. The young detectives froze, their only movement to tighten their grip on their coats or (in the case of the children keeping hold of the thief) shift in attempt to get closer to Kid's warm cape. The wind picked Jack up and the boy flew to the nearest wall, sketching upon it a man in a cape and top hat before moving to the next and drawing a similar image, except this one showed the figure disappearing into a flash of smoke. In another Kid was swooping down in his glider, the window sported the image of the thief offering something to the moon wile two other walls had the man releasing doves or throwing snowballs. If the last one seemed out of place no one said anything.

The group could only watch, the detectives in awed horror, as images appeared of their own accord along the walls. Conan and Hakuba shared a glance as the detective boy's gazed at the mysterious images, each desperately hoping that the other had some sort of explanation. However, any theories disappeared as, with a surge of power from the unseen sprite, the frost illustrations peeled themselves off of the walls. Immediately the room was swamped with ghost-like, frosty Kaito Kid's, each one spinning or frolicking around. Doves flew around the room and Jack had to duck to avoid one Kid's glider.

The unbelievers, children and detectives alike, were gaping at the display and even Kid found he couldn't turn away. When he'd planned for Jack to create a distraction should anything go wrong he hadn't been expecting… this.

"A projection?" Hakuba offered, though his suggestion sounded weak. Jack scoffed at the disbelief and directed the flying Kid over the group and allowing the figure to explode into a flurry of white, cold snowflakes. The children gasped as the cool wetness settled on their arms and faces and the teenage detective went pale. Conan glared at the flakes with a calculating air, as though trying his best to make logic apply and getting frustrated when no solution arose.

Ayumi stood, reaching out a hand to hold one of the impossible flakes. Ai's hands dropped to her sides and she stood amid the flurry, looking up to watch the crystals fall. Mitsuhiko knelt down create a miniscuel ball of the white stuff, wonder in his eyes. Genta stood with a disbelieving laugh, leaning his head back to catch snowflakes on his tongue. It wasn't until Hakuba let go of Kid's arm to stoop down to examine the snow that the thief realized just how effective the distraction was. His opposition was so mystified by the display that they had completely forgotten about him, their wonder overrode their determination.

Jack noticed as well and called upon one of the birds to turn into snowflakes over their heads as well. With a shifting of his shoulders and a click of the wrist the handcuffs sat unclasped in Kid's palm. The thief silently snuck away from the group, and it wasn't until his hands grasped over the jewel that Jack let loose with the grand finale, calling for each apparition to diffuse into snow, one after the other like a fireworks display. And even had the detectives realized the ploy the air was too thick with white snow to see the colorless thief.

When the flakes had settled Ayumi let out a shriek and pointed at a window where Kid sat crouched on the sill. The sound broke the spell of silence and wonder as the room turned to look at Kid. The phantom thief tipped his hat at the group as the wind rose, kicking up flurries of snow and creating a total whiteout in the room. When the wind died and the snow cleared, Kid was gone. Within seconds an officer came in, cursing wildly when he saw the state of the room.

He called into his radio and within seconds the room was flooded with officers gaping at the scene. Then, suddenly, out of seemingly thin air a snowball smashed into the side of the already enraged Nakamouri's face. For an instant nobody moved, certain that this move would turn the inspector over the edge. However, when the man turned his face held less than half of the fury the officers had suspected. "Who threw that?" He asked, his face between fury and amusement as he knelt down, scooping up his own ball of slush and flinging it at an officer, who readily retaliated. Within seconds the room had fallen into utter chaos as the officers and children battled, Jack Frost laughing and spinning at it's center, making sure they never ran out of amo.

The Detective Boys formed a bundle to protect themselves from the adult's onslaught. Genta and Mitsuhiko were their main offense, chucking out Snowballs as fast as Ayumi and a slightly reluctant Haibara could make them. Conan crouched with Hakuba in attempt to escape the chaos and think through what Kid's tricks. Not that they were having much luck on either account.

Ayumi squealed as a snowball hit her back, and reeled her arm back to retaliate only to find she had no clue where her attacker had disappeared to. She decided upon throwing it at a nearby officer, her shot going short until a gust of wind blew it up to hit the man square in the chest. "Conan-kun," She began between snowballs and succeded in gaining the attention of the whole group. "I think Kid really did bring Jack Frost."

"He doesn't exist." Ai said coolly, "This is all just one of that thief's tricks." A snowball hit her from nowhere, lodging snow in her light hair. All eyes turned to the area from where the snow came, but only Ayumi saw the pale teen floating there, a staff in hand and mischievous look on his face.

"Jack Frost!" She exclaimed, turning to her friends excitedly. "He is here!"

"Ayumi-chan," Hakuba said kindly but exasperatedly, like a man talking to an extraordinarily naïve child. "Kid did this, not some made up spirit."

Conan nodded as Jack floated closer to the group, realizing that Ayumi was looking right at him. The girl glanced between Conan and the advancing Jack for a moment before reeling on her friend and crush.

"Oh yeah, then how did he do it?" The girl asked and the remaining two actual children leaned forward in anticipation, as though Conan's answer would lead them to who to believe. The shrunken detective shared a glance with the correctly sized one before both of their faces scrunched up in though, even Haibara looking eager to hear the result.

"You can see me?" Jack asked the girl timidly as Conan frowned in thought.

Ayumi nodded shyly before mumbling in confusion. "Why can't they?" Luckily everyone's focus was still resolutely focused on the two detectives and no one noticed the girl talking to mid-air.

Jack let out a whoop of excitement and flipped in the air. "She can see me!" He laughed, dancing in the air above Genta and Mitsuhiko's unsuspecting heads and batting some snowballs away before they hit the children and brought their attention back to the icy war.. "That brings my total up to nine believers, thank you very much." He leaned down to answer the girl's question. "You can see me because you believe! Only believers can see me. I was here the whole time with Kid! Completely invisible."

Any response the girl had was cut off as Conan gave a frustrated sigh. The boy shared an exasperated glance with Hakuba. "I don't know."

Jack smiled and flew down with a snicker so that he was inches away from Mitsuhiko's face, Ayumi watching him constantly. Genta gasped and grinned. "If Conan-kun can't figure it out then Ayumi-chan must be right!"

"Yeah!" Mitsuhiko coursed excitedly. Conan frowned at the children.

"Look, just because I can't immediately-"

But his argument was cut off as Mitsuhiko jumped backward with a yelp, suddenly seeing a pale teenage face inches from his own. Genta jumped back as well, watching Jack with a kind of silent awe. The frost chile let out a loud whoop and did a flip in the air. "Eleven! Just wait till I tell the Kangaroo! I'll match him in no time." The two boys gaped at him and Jack swooped down, the wind mustered their hair in way of greeting.

"Y-y-y ou're-"

"Jack Frost at your service, Master of snowballs and fun times."

"He's real! He's real, Conan-kun, look!" Genta shouted, Mitsuhiko gaping behind him, however, the small detective simply shook his head.

"Jack Frost doesn't exist. He's just a fairy tale."

"Not even a fairy tale." Hakuba butt in as Haibara nodded. "More like a saying."

Jack stuck his tongue out at the three, too ecstatic about his three new believers to really feel angry. "Come on, ignore these non-believing sourpusses. Let's have some fun! You've never seen a snowball fight with Jack Frost on your side."

The three skeptical members of the group watched in confusion as the children scattered as though commanded by some invisible person, joining the snowball fight with even more gusto than before and occasionally calling out to someone who wasn't there. Ayumi ran up to Haibara after a particularly impossible throw sent snow up an officer's nose and down his shirt at the same time. "Ai-Chan he exists! I promise he does, he's right here! You have to see him."

The girl remained skeptical, but before she could let out a scathing and disbelieving reply a ball of glowing blue slush hit her face. She let a gasp and though it is unknown if she believed or not, the girl joined the gusto with just as much joy as the children. Jack sighed and floated to land sprawled out in a sitting position next to Ayumi. "She needed way too much magic to have fun. She needs to loosen up."

The light haired girl squeaked in a very uncharacteristic manner as Genta nailed her with a shot as she dumped snow down Conan's back, smirking mischievously. "Though it looks to me like you guys are going a long way towards helping her." He laughed and ruffled the girl's hair before shooting into the air without waiting for a reply.

Conan and Hakuba shared a glance at the children, each of their minds working wildly. "This is crazy!" Hakuba muttered. "Absolutely crazy! And I don't care how good Kid is, he can't cause a mass hallucination for only three people in a room of dozens."

Jack, who was floating close enough to catch the comment, laughed. "Don't let him hear you say that, he'll take in as a challenge."

Conan, who didn't hear of course, simply frowned. "I don't know." He said, gesturing at the children. "They can be… naïve, but I would never call any of them delusional and they all clearly _see_ something, even if we can't. Maybe…"

"No. No no no. I know you're just a kid but I thought you were much smarter than this. I can't believe that you would even consider that Kid actually did somehow call in Jack Frost. It's impossible."

Impossible. Just like how it was impossible for a teenager to shrink into a seven year old. Just like it was impossible for two people to survive the poisonous apotoxin. Like it was impossible for Hattori to dream he was in trouble the night before he was. Honestly, Conan's view on the impossible had skewered slightly from Kudo's.

"No… It's just improbable." And at that moment Conan didn't really _believe_ but he no longer disbelieved. And that, that not-quite-yet belief was enough to see a flash of blue and brown in the white, enough to hear the gentlest whisper of laugher coasting through the wind. Suddenly, without even realizing he had made the change, Conan found himself full of full-hearted belief staring at a very real, very present Jack Frost as the teen whooped with joy at having another believer.

Five minutes into the resulting snowball frenzy had Conan thinking again, though Hakuba simply looked exasperated that the last rational thinker other than him had descended into the chaos. That was the issue that sent the small detective's mind blazing. The room had divulged into complete and utter chaos, mischievous but harmless fun. For all Kid tried to act like the gentleman, Conan knew that he would never miss out on something like this. Kid was posing as one of the officers somewhere, the problem was which one.

It was with a feeling of victory that he realized the answer to figuring out. Jack would know which one was Kid, they had been in this one together after all. But the ice spirit would never tell him where his partner was, if only to keep the game going longer. However, just as Jack knew where Kid was, Kid would know where Jack was. Moreover, Kid would be able to _see_ where Jack was. That was all he needed. Conan watched, with a keen and practiced eye, keeping thrack of the hits, misses and aiming of the snowy battle until finally an officer nailed Jack right in the stomach, aiming directly at him. Then again, smacking the icy boy in the face before he could retaliate. Though retaliate he did, long before the man got a chance to throw a third snowball he was pelted with four, all thrown with perfect accuracy gained only through centuries of practice. The fact that the man was unsurprised that he was pummeled by snow coming from seemingly nowhere only cemented Conan's conviction. With a wicked grin Conan found his ignored soccer ball and began coating it in snow.

Kid laughed, enjoying the sight of the chaos just as much as Conan predicted he would. If only he could tell Aoko about this. Then he would- His thoughts were cut off as a snowball the size of a bowling ball slammed into his gut with near-impossible force, sending him sprawling against a wall. He looked down in dazed confusion as the snowball's outer shell dissolved in his hands, revealing black and white splotches.

His eyes rose to see Conan standing on a display, looming over him as electricity sparked through his sneakers. "Found you, Kid."

To the small sleuth's surprise his words were met with raucous laughter. He turned to see Jack crouched on the top of his staff, looking insanely amused. "Wow, he is good. What was that you said Kid? Never in a million years would they figure it out? I knew time flies when you're having fun but I never woulda though a million years had already passed. Nice job, uh, Tantei-kun." He butchered the name horribly but offered his hand for a high five which Conan returned with mixed feelings, part cautious, part curious, and part amused.

"Shut up." Kid said teasingly, with a large grin. "If it hadn't been for his little friends he'd be sitting in the corner with Tantei-san, scratching their heads and trying to logic away the impossible." Conan rolled his eyes at the barb but said nothing as Kid continued. It wasn't like the thief was wrong. "Speaking of which, where is the old stick in the mud."

Jack pointed at a crouched figure with his staff and knelt down to grab a handful of snow. "Over there, complaining about hallucinations and the cold. Though," He added as he drew back his arm to throw. "He should be looking over this way in three, two, one…"

The powder hit the back of the teen's head, cold ice chunks slipping down his shirt. Hakuba's head shot around, freezing when he saw Conan standing over a felled officer and realizing what that meant. While he'd been crouched trying to get warm and moping, Conan had actually tracked down Kid. "Kid! Conan-kun has Kid!" The officers stopped their game and even the children paused, seeing Jack waving cheekily beside their friend. With a synchronized yell the officers shot forward as Kid darted up and away, but with a sweep of a brown shepherd's crook the ground between Kid and the people of the law was covered in thin, shiny, _slippery_ ice. As the officers fell, sliding into each and every direction imaginable Jack and Kid gave them one last passing laugh and jumped out the window, taking to the skies and flying on. Kid chuckled and glanced up at Jack as they rested a few rooftops away.

"Best. Heist. Ever."


End file.
